Industry seeks UP govt partnership for export competitiveness

Uttar Pradesh Inc has sought partnership with the state government to increase export competitiveness.

Although, exports from UP have seen an uptrend in the last couple of years, the exporters are facing fresh challenges in the wake of euro-zone crisis, even as the US market is yet to recover from the downturn.

The US and European markets constitute almost 40 per cent of country’s export.

PHD chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) deputy secretary general, Susmita Shekhar, met UP joint export commissioner Prabhat Kumar proposing a series of programmes to mentor the exporters in collaboration with the state Export Promotion Bureau (EPB).

According to the report of the Directorate General of Commercial Intelligence and Statistics, exports worth Rs 34,818 crore were registered from UP during 2008-09, a growth of 102 per cent over the previous year.

Export growth during 2009-10, the numbers are still being collated, is likely to be flat due to economic slowdown in the key US markets, which alone accounts for 15 per cent of the export destinations.

PHDCCI will be organising a seminar on ‘Forex Risk Management’ at Kanpur next month.

Besides, the Bureau is looking forward to the collaboration with the Chamber on export programme on brassware at Moradabad, and a similar event on essential oil and growth of aromatic plants at Kannauj.

Established in 1999, EPB interacts with exporters on one hand and Export Promotion Councils, agencies, export associations, state and central government bodies on the other.

“We want to share our knowledge pool to benefit exporters and the state government departments mandated to encourage and facilitate exports,” PHDCCI resident director Brig Amitabha told Business Standard.

The major export hubs in UP include, Noida Export Processing Zone ( gems & jewellery, apparel, IT), Ghaziabad (chemicals, engineering, textiles, medicines), Meerut (sports goods), Saharanpur (wood carving, toys), Khurja (pottery, bone China), Aligarh (locks), Agra (silk carpets, handicrafts, jewellery, marble inlay, leather), Ferozabad (glassware), Moradabad (brassware), Mathura (stone craft), Kannauj (perfume), Lucknow (chikan), Mainpuri (tobacco), Kanpur (leather, textiles, pharma, spices), Varanasi (silk, zari, handicraft), among others.

Meanwhile, PHDCCI organised a workshop on ‘How to Export’ in association with the Indian Institute of Planning & Management (IIPM), addressed by K M Sugar Mills’ promoter L K Jhunjhumwala, with representatives of EPB, IIPM and State Bank of India (SBI).

SBI chief manager (trade finance) Ashok Khanna informed that India’s foreign trade was 2 per cent less than global exports, showing huge potential in the sector.